The Sleeping Souls / Rescue Rooms / Nottingham
A trip into Nottingham and to the Rescue Rooms for what looks to be a great line up. The Sleeping Souls are in town on their co-headline tour with Sean McGowan.
First up on stage is Hannah Rose Platt. I was looking forward to her set, having recently featured her latest single The Wendigo Rag. Hailing from Liverpool Hannah delivers a delightful soulful set. Very at ease, Hannah interacted and talked to the crowd explaining some of the songs, such as The Kissing Room (from her 2023 album “Deathbed Confessions”) named after a room at New Yorks Grand Central Station. She referenced her experiences in Scandinavia learning about their mythology, exploring new styles, and the horror influences are clear a number of the tracks was clear. From 2023’s “Hypnagogia” we also enjoyed Mara, and the magnificent Beast in the Water. The set ended with the wonderful Feeding Time for the Monsters also from “Deathbed Confessions”. Some interesting techniques (her guitarist using a screwdriver to create some amazing eerie tones) and fantastic storytelling came together to deliver a great opening set that went down well with the early crowd.
Next up we have something I’ve been looking forward to, for a long time. The first show I ever photographed back in 2018 was The Levellers, and support was the one and only Sean McGowan (and Nick Parker). The Southampton based singer songwriter has a witty, fun ‘one of the lads’ style, and this comes through in his lyrics, subject matter and personality. A genuinely relatable guy, Sean sings from the heart.
As co-headliner, the set is longer and is a great mix of new material from his latest album “Who On Earth” released in 2023 along with all his best hits.
The set opens with the brilliant No Show from his 2017 debut album “Graft and Grief” which is packed with youthful energy and passion. His humorous side comes out in the cheeky Costa Del Solution from the same album.
Man Up from his latest album “Who On Earth” is a great addition to the live set as is . Sean talks at ease with the crowd, often going off on diversions entertaining the crowd. We go right back to his first EP in 2015 for Millbrook Road which is one you just have to sing along to.
The set ends with his Cuppa Tea from 2018’s “Son of the Smith” a fast and light hearted look at modern life and the daily grind and its effect. The punchy lyrics are beautifully crafted and descriptive “I am sick and tired, I’ve spent my whole life on my knees, can I have some more sir please. I pray for the day when I brave it and sink my teeth, I’ll chew the fat of life to pieces, and wash it down with a cuppa tea”.
Many of the crowd tonight had not heard of Sean and were here for the Souls, but by the end, he had picked up a lot of new fans.
And now, onto tonight’s headliners. Perhaps better known as Frank Turner’s touring band (FT and the Sleeping Souls) the guys have decided to write and perform some of their own material (as if they didn’t perform on the road enough with Frank !). As a result, they released their fantastic debut single Liar Lover back in 2022, their first EP “Weathering the Storm” in 2023, before their debut album “Just Before the World Starts Burning” was launched in late 2023.
The five-piece band, who have played together with Frank since 2006 clearly have incredible musical skills as individuals, but also an almost telepathic link and timing. Matt Nasir tells us that several of the band are ill, but even so they go on to deliver a brilliant performance. Interestingly they stood round the stage, no one taking centre stage. And Matt joked about the absence of the ‘man in the middle’ but it felt that this was because as a band, they work together and succeed together, and no one member stands above the rest.
The set started with Rivals a bangin’ track that had the faithful crowd up and bouncing right from the off with guitarist and singer Cahir O’Doherty leading the way amping up the crowd ably supported by fellow guitarist Ben Lloyd standing at the back and laying down some great riffs.
The set is a great balance between harder loud rock and softer more delicate sections, such as the delightful Steal Some Time which is a beautiful acoustic sad song about a relationship break up and then re-uniting.
The set flew by, and the performance was precise and engaging. For me the highlight tracks were a great rendition of their debut single Liar / Lover, Weathering the Storm, and the brilliant Remember Boann which starts with an infectious piano riff before opening up with some excellent heavy drumming, a song about the lost art of storytelling (something The Sleeping Souls are not guilty of !).
The Sleeping Souls are having a great time on this tour. Guitarist Ben Lloyd is darting around the
As the set draws to a close we enjoy Caught in The Scrape which, just like the opener is fast and powerful, bookending the set nicely. It’s a rousing and energy filled end.
A great night. Three very different styles on display, a more laid back folk like set from Hannah Rose Platt, a fast and fun set from the cheeky Sean McGowan, and then a set of great rock from The Sleeping Souls. All three dovetail together brilliantly. The crowd have big grins as we head through to the bar as the quiz ends, ready for the karaoke.
A great night, from start to finish.
